Participation in remedial education increasing

Many students are deciding to take remedial classes before pursuing higher education.

Many states, such as Oklahoma, have seen vast increases in the number of students opting to take at least one remedial course, according to New OK.

A remedial class is a not-for-credit course that teaches students the basics of subjects such as reading, math and English.

Oklahoma officials attribute the increase to the desire among adults to earn higher degrees, according to the news outlet. These individuals have usually taken time off after high school, state officials told the source, and therefore need to be refreshed in certain subjects before taking more strenuous college classes.

These Oklahoma adults are not alone. Walker Hunter, a math professor at Pennsylvania's Montgomery County Community College, said he has seen many students use remedial classes to recall the information they learned long ago in high school, according to The Times Herald. Because many adults who attend community college are in the 20s and 30s, their math and writing skills may be rusty, he said.

In order to meet this demand, a majority of universities across the country are offering remedial education . According to the National Center for Education Statistics, between 2008 and 2009, approximately 72.6 percent of public and private universities provided remedial classes.